Meaning of 'Es gibt keine Maikäfer mehr'

by Reinhard Mey

Interpretation

In the song 'There are no ladybugs anymore' by Reinhard Mey, it is about the fact that there are no more ladybugs nowadays. The singer reminisces about his childhood when he used to catch ladybugs. There used to be a garden near his home where there were many ladybugs during ladybug season. The singer remembers how as a child, he would go ladybug hunting with a large shoebox with air holes in the lid. He would shake trees and dig in the moss to find the beetles. The successes were great and he was proud of his catching techniques.

But today, the shoebox would remain empty because there are no more ladybugs. The singer realizes that even a good beetle hunter wouldn't find any ladybugs anymore. He longs for the time when ladybugs were still widespread and it was a real challenge to catch many of them. He also remembers a man named Schlüter, who was a ladybug expert and impressed him back then.

The singer reflects on the significance of ladybugs and why their disappearance makes him sad. He even writes a beetle requiem on a birch leaf. There are certainly more important things, but he still wonders why there are no ladybugs in the parking lot today. Perhaps he has learned from the ladybugs how to buzz, scratch, and crawl, how to count and hum. Perhaps he also feels a connection to them, as they are distant namesakes.

At the end of the song, the singer concludes that perhaps the ladybugs have only gone a little ahead of us. He longs for the time when ladybugs were numerous and could be found everywhere. Today, their absence is something that makes him sad and pensive.

In summary, the song lyrics describe the singer's nostalgia for the time when ladybugs were common and his regret over their disappearance. He reflects on the significance of ladybugs in his childhood and their absence in the present day.